System and method for detecting imperfections in a screen

ABSTRACT

A method and system for detecting imperfections on a surface of a touchscreen of an electrical device, comprising: swiping a test object, such as a fingertip, a fingernail or a pin, along at least a portion of the touchscreen; producing, by the touchscreen, an electric signal indicative of the test object&#39;s contact with the touchscreen; receiving an acoustic signal by an acoustic sensor, during the swipe of the test object along the touchscreen; analyzing, by a processor, at least one of the electric signal and received acoustic signal; and determining existence of imperfections on the touchscreen&#39;s surface based on the analysis.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to detection of imperfections in screens.More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methodsfor remote detection of imperfections in touchscreens.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Touchscreens have become a vital and expensive component of consumerelectronic devices everywhere. With the rising demand to insure,diagnose malfunctions in and refurbish electronic devices, a method forremote detection of broken screens has become an imperative demand. Forexample, in processing a buyback of a failed product or under amoney-return guarantee, a user may be requested to indicate if thescreen of the electronic device is broken or not. Such manual requestfrom a user causes the assessment of the electric device's condition tobe vulnerable to fraud and mistakes.

Some solutions for detection of cracks on a touchscreen surfacecurrently available on the market involve taking a picture or a videosequence of the examined device, and analyzing the outcome to determinethe touchscreen's condition. For example, light reflection may beanalyzed to ascertain whether a touchscreen is fractured. However, thepresently available methods require dedicated hardware (e.g.: aproprietary camera) as well as strict standardization, (e.g.: alignmentof the device, distance from the camera, lighting and cleaning of thescreen due to light reflecting marks). These requirements render theavailable methods inaccurate, and susceptible to errors.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

There is thus provided, in accordance with some embodiments of theinvention, a method and system for detecting imperfections in a screen.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method of detectingimperfections on a surface of a touchscreen of an electrical device,comprising: swiping a test object along at least a portion of thetouchscreen; producing, by the touchscreen, an electric signalindicative of the test object's contact with the touchscreen; receivingan acoustic signal by an acoustic sensor, during the swipe of the testobject along the touchscreen; analyzing, by a processor, at least one ofthe electric signal and received acoustic signal; and determiningexistence of imperfections on the touchscreen's surface based on theanalysis.

Some embodiments may further include analyzing by the processor, theelectric signal, indicative of the test object's contact with thetouchscreen, to detect the circumference of the test object's contactarea with the touchscreen.

Other embodiments may further include: defining at least one requirementfor the circumference of the test object's contact area with thetouchscreen; and if the requirement is not met, prompting a user toapply changes to the test object to meet the defined requirement.

In some embodiments, the method may further include: presenting apattern on the touchscreen and prompting a user to swipe a test objectalong the presented pattern; analyzing the electric signal, indicativeof the test object's contact with the touchscreen; verifying follow ofthe test object's swipe along the presented pattern, based on theanalysis; and prompting the user to repeat the swipe along at least aportion of the presented pattern, if the verification has failed.

The method, according to some embodiments, may further include:detecting whether a screen cover is applied to the touchscreen, based onanalysis of data received from one or more sensors of the electricaldevice; and prompting a user to remove the cover and repeat the swipe ifa screen cover has been detected.

According to some embodiments, determining the existence ofimperfections based on the analysis may further include: extractingvalues of at least one parameter of the acoustic signal; and determiningexistence of imperfections if the extracted values are within at leastone predetermined range.

According to some embodiments, analysis of the electric signal mayfurther include: forming an initial group of labeled touchscreens,comprising at least one touchscreen with at least one knownimperfection, and at least one touchscreen without imperfections;extracting at least one feature from the electric signal relating toeach touchscreen of the initial group of labeled touchscreens;classifying each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens toclasses according to said at least one feature, wherein each class isassociated with touchscreens having or not having imperfections;producing an additional electric signal, from an additional unlabeledtouchscreen; extracting the at least one feature from the additionalelectric signal of the additional unlabeled touchscreen; and associatingthe additional touchscreen with a class of touchscreens having or nothaving imperfections.

According to some embodiments, analysis of the acoustic signal mayfurther include: forming an initial group of labeled touchscreens,comprising at least one touchscreen with at least one knownimperfection, and at least one touchscreen without imperfections;extracting at least one feature from the acoustic signal relating toeach touchscreen of the initial group of labeled touchscreens;classifying each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens toclasses according to said at least one feature, wherein each class isassociated with touchscreens having or not having imperfections;receiving an additional acoustic signal, from an additional unlabeledtouchscreen; extracting the at least one feature from the additionalacoustic signal of the additional unlabeled touchscreen; and associatingthe additional touchscreen with a class of touchscreens having or nothaving imperfections.

According to one embodiment, the extracted feature may include at leastone of: frequencies, amplitudes, Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)coefficients, Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) coefficients, DiscreteCosine Transform (DCT) coefficients, Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT)coefficients, and Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC).

According to some embodiments, the electric device is one of asmartphone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, ane-reader, a laptop, a computer screen, a television screen, a gameconsole, and a point-of-sale (POS) screen.

According to some embodiments the acoustic sensor is associated with theelectric device, and is one of a microphone and a piezoelectric sensor.

A system for detecting imperfections on a surface of a touchscreen of anelectrical device, according to some embodiments, may include: at leastone non-transitory memory device, wherein at least one module ofinstruction code is stored; at least one processor associated with theat least one non-transitory memory device. According to someembodiments, the at least one processor may be configured upon executionof the at least one module of instruction code to: receive an electricsignal produced by the touchscreen, indicative of a test object'scontact with the touchscreen; receive an acoustic signal produced by anacoustic sensor, during a swipe of the test object along thetouchscreen; analyze at least one of the electric signal and acousticsignal; and determine existence of imperfections on the touchscreen'ssurface based on the analysis.

According to some embodiments, the at least one processor is furtherconfigured to analyze the electric signal indicative of the testobject's contact with the touchscreen, and detect the circumference ofthe test object's contact area with the touchscreen.

According to some embodiments, the at least one processor may be furtherconfigured to receive at least one requirement for the circumference ofthe test object's contact area with the touchscreen; and if therequirement is not met, prompt a user to apply changes to the testobject to meet the received at least one requirement.

In yet other embodiments, the at least one processor may be furtherconfigured to: present a pattern on the touchscreen and prompt a user toswipe a test object along the presented pattern; analyze the electricsignal, indicative of the test object's contact with the touchscreen;verify follow of the test object's swipe along the presented pattern,based on the analysis; and prompt the user to repeat the swipe along atleast a portion of the presented pattern, if the verification hasfailed. The at least one processor may further be configured to: detectwhether a screen cover is applied to the touchscreen, based on analysisof data received from one or more sensors of the electrical device; andprompt the user to remove the cover and repeat the swipe if a screencover has been detected.

According to some embodiments, the at least one processor may beconfigured to determine the existence of imperfections based on theanalysis by: extracting values of at least one parameter of the acousticsignal; and determining existence of imperfections if the extractedvalues are within at least one predetermined range.

According to some embodiments, the analysis of the electric signal bythe at least one processor may further comprise: forming an initialgroup of labeled touchscreens, comprising at least one touchscreen withat least one known imperfection, and at least one touchscreen withoutimperfections; extracting at least one feature from the electric signalrelating to each touchscreen of the initial group of labeledtouchscreens; classifying each touchscreen of the labeled group oftouchscreens to classes according to said at least one feature, whereineach class is associated with touchscreens having or not havingimperfections; producing an additional electric signal, from anadditional unlabeled touchscreen; extracting the at least one featurefrom the additional electric signal of the additional unlabeledtouchscreen; and associating the additional touchscreen with a class oftouchscreens having or not having imperfections. In yet otherembodiments, analysis of the acoustic signal by the at least oneprocessor may further comprise: forming an initial group of labeledtouchscreens, comprising at least one touchscreen with at least oneknown imperfection, and at least one touchscreen without imperfections;extracting at least one feature from the acoustic signal relating toeach touchscreen of the initial group of labeled touchscreens;classifying each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens toclasses according to said at least one feature, wherein each class isassociated with touchscreens having or not having imperfections;receiving an additional acoustic signal, from an additional unlabeledtouchscreen; extracting the at least one feature from the additionalacoustic signal of the additional unlabeled touchscreen; and associatingthe additional touchscreen with a class of touchscreens having or nothaving imperfections.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed outand distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification.The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation,together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best beunderstood by reference to the following detailed description when readwith the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram, depicting an electric device according tosome embodiments;

FIG. 2 depicts a schematic illustration of an electrical device,including a touchscreen and a microphone, and configured to perform atouch test, according to some embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a diagnosis server, according to someembodiments;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram depicting a method of implementing a touchtest, according to some embodiments;

FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5C jointly comprise a flow diagram, depicting a methodof implementing a touch test, according to some embodiments.

It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration,elements shown in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale.For example, the dimensions of some of the elements may be exaggeratedrelative to other elements for clarity. Further, where consideredappropriate, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures toindicate corresponding or analogous elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are setforth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention.However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that thepresent invention may be practiced without these specific details. Inother instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components have notbeen described in detail so as not to obscure the present invention.

Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method and a system forperforming a touch test, to analyze the condition of a touchscreenembedded within an electric device. The term “condition of thetouchscreen” henceforth relates to existence of imperfections on thetouchscreen's surface, such as cracks, scratches, fractures, dents andholes, or the absence thereof. The term “touch test” henceforth relatesto a test procedure, performed by a user on a specific touchscreen,involving touching the touchscreen with a test object, to ascertain thecondition of the touchscreen, as elaborated further below.

According to some embodiments, the method includes at least part of thesteps of: prompting a user to swipe a test object along a touchscreen;producing an electric signal by the touchscreen, indicative of the testobject's contact with the touchscreen; recording the electric signalsproduced by the touchscreen; sensing an audio signal produced by theswiping of the test object across the touchscreen by an audio sensor;recording the audio signal received by the audio sensor; recordingelectrical signals that are produced by the audio sensor consequent tothe reception of the audio signals; and analyzing the recorded audiosignal and/or electric signals by a processor, to determine whether thetest object has encountered imperfections on the touchscreen's surface.

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are setforth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention.However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that thepresent invention may be practiced without these specific details. Inother instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components have notbeen described in detail so as not to obscure the present invention.Some features or elements described with respect to one embodiment maybe combined with features or elements described with respect to otherembodiments. For the sake of clarity, discussion of same or similarfeatures or elements may not be repeated.

Although embodiments of the invention are not limited in this regard,discussions utilizing terms such as, for example, “processing,”“computing,” “calculating,” “determining,” “establishing”, “analyzing”,“checking”, or the like, may refer to operation(s) and/or process(es) ofa computer, a computing platform, a computing system, or otherelectronic computing device, that manipulates and/or transforms datarepresented as physical (e.g., electronic) quantities within thecomputer's registers and/or memories into other data similarlyrepresented as physical quantities within the computer's registersand/or memories or other information non-transitory storage medium thatmay store instructions to perform operations and/or processes. Althoughembodiments of the invention are not limited in this regard, the terms“plurality” and “a plurality” as used herein may include, for example,“multiple” or “two or more”. The terms “plurality” or “a plurality” maybe used throughout the specification to describe two or more components,devices, elements, units, parameters, or the like. The term set whenused herein may include one or more items. Unless explicitly stated, themethod embodiments described herein are not constrained to a particularorder or sequence. Additionally, some of the described methodembodiments or elements thereof can occur or be performedsimultaneously, at the same point in time, or concurrently. As usedherein, the term “follow” may be used as a noun to denote correspondenceof a sensed pattern or shape with a predetermined pattern or shape.“Audio sensor” is used interchangeably herein with “acoustic sensor” torefer to an audio or acoustic sensor, such as a microphone orpiezoelectric transducer, and an “audio signal” or “acoustic signal’refers to a signal generated by such device.

Reference is now made to FIG. 1 which depicts a schematic illustrationof an electric device 100A according to some embodiments. In thisembodiment, electric device 100A may include a touchscreen 135A and amicrophone 135 b, and may be any of: a smartphone, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a tablet, an e-reader, a laptop, a computer screen, atelevision screen, a game console, a point-of-sale (POS) screen, and thelike.

According to some embodiments, the electric device 100A of FIG. 1 may bea computing device (e.g.: device 100 in FIG. 2), as elaborated furtherbelow.

The electric device 100A of FIG. 1 is configured to present a pattern 10on the touchscreen, and prompt a user to perform a touch test, to detectimperfections (e.g. cracks, holes, and the like) in the surface of thetouchscreen, as elaborated further below.

Reference is now made to FIG. 2, depicting a block diagram of acomputing device 100, according to some embodiments. Computing device100 may include a controller 105 that may be, for example, a centralprocessing unit processor (CPU), a chip or any suitable computing orcomputational device, an operating system 115, a memory 120, executablecode 125, a storage system 130 that may include, input devices 135 andoutput devices 140. Controller 105 (or one or more controllers orprocessors, possibly across multiple units or devices) may be configuredto carry out methods described herein, and/or to execute or act as thevarious modules, units, etc. More than one computing device 100 may beincluded in, and one or more computing devices 100 may act as thecomponents of, a system according to embodiments of the invention.

Operating system 115 may be or may include any code segment (e.g., onesimilar to executable code 125 described herein) designed and/orconfigured to perform tasks involving coordination, scheduling,arbitration, supervising, controlling or otherwise managing operation ofcomputing device 100, for example, scheduling execution of softwareprograms or tasks or enabling software programs or other modules orunits to communicate. Operating system 115 may be a commercial operatingsystem. It will be noted that an operating system 115 may be an optionalcomponent, e.g., in some embodiments, a system may include a computingdevice that does not require or include an operating system 115.

Memory 120 may be or may include, for example, a Random-Access Memory(RAM), a read only memory (ROM), a Dynamic RAM (DRAM), a SynchronousDRAM (SD-RAM), a double data rate (DDR) memory chip, a Flash memory, avolatile memory, a non-volatile memory, a cache memory, a buffer, ashort-term memory unit, a long-term memory unit, or other suitablememory units or storage units. Memory 120 may be or may include aplurality of, possibly different memory units. Memory 120 may be acomputer or processor non-transitory readable medium, or a computernon-transitory storage medium, e.g., a RAM.

Executable code 125 may be any executable code, e.g., an application, aprogram, a process, task or script. Executable code 125 may be executedby controller 105 possibly under control of operating system 115. Forexample, executable code 125 may be an application that enforcessecurity in a vehicle as further described herein. Although, for thesake of clarity, a single item of executable code 125 is shown in FIG.2, a system according to some embodiments of the invention may include aplurality of executable code segments similar to executable code 125that may be loaded into memory 120 and cause controller 105 to carry outmethods described herein.

Storage system 130 may be or may include, for example, a flash memory asknown in the art, a memory that is internal to, or embedded in, a microcontroller or chip as known in the art, a hard disk drive, aCD-Recordable (CD-R) drive, a Blu-ray disk (BD), a universal serial bus(USB) device or other suitable removable and/or fixed storage unit.Content may be stored in storage system 130 and may be loaded fromstorage system 130 into memory 120 where it may be processed bycontroller 105. In some embodiments, some of the components shown inFIG. 2 may be omitted. For example, memory 120 may be a non-volatilememory having the storage capacity of storage system 130. Accordingly,although shown as a separate component, storage system 130 may beembedded or included in memory 120. Model 136 may be, or may include, atiming model that includes timing properties of messages, or expectedbehavior of messages, as described herein. As further described, model136 may be, or may include, a content model that may include contentattributes or properties of messages, or expected content relatedbehavior of messages, as described herein.

Input devices 135 may be or may include any suitable input devices,components or systems, e.g., a detachable keyboard or keypad, a mouseand the like. Output devices 140 may include one or more (possiblydetachable) displays or monitors, speakers and/or any other suitableoutput devices. Any applicable input/output (I/O) devices may beconnected to computing device 100 as shown by blocks 135 and 140. Forexample, a wired or wireless network interface card (NIC), a universalserial bus (USB) device or external hard drive may be included in inputdevices 135 and/or output devices 140. It will be recognized that anysuitable number of input devices 135 and output device 140 may beoperatively connected to computing device 100 as shown by blocks 135 and140.

A system according to some embodiments of the invention may includecomponents such as, but not limited to, a plurality of centralprocessing units (CPU) or any other suitable multi-purpose or specificprocessors or controllers (e.g., controllers similar to controller 105),a plurality of input units, a plurality of output units, a plurality ofmemory units, and a plurality of storage units.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3, which is a block diagram of a touchtest diagnosis server 200, according to some embodiments.

According to some embodiments, the diagnosis server 200 may beimplemented on the same device as the electric device (e.g.: device 100Aof FIG. 1) upon which the touch test is performed. According to otherembodiments, the diagnosis server 200 may be implemented on anotherdevice, (for example on computing device 100 of FIG. 2), different fromthe device upon which the touch test is performed.

According to some embodiments, the touch test diagnosis server may beconfigured to receive data 230, 240, 250 from at least one electricdevice (e.g.: element 100A in FIG. 1), pertaining to a touch test thathas been performed on the touchscreen of the electric device (e.g.:element 135A in FIG. 1).

According to some embodiments, the data received from the at least oneelectric device may include at least one of: an audio signal, producedduring swiping of the test object along the touchscreen; an electricsignal, produced by the touchscreen, indicative of a test object'scontact with the touchscreen; acquired by an acoustic sensor such as amicrophone (e.g.: microphone 135B in FIG. 1) or a piezoelectric sensor.

According to some embodiments, the data received from the at least oneelectric device may include data from one or more sensors of theelectrical device, such as, for example a proximity sensor, a pressuresensor, barometer sensor and the like.

According to some embodiments, when the diagnosis server 100 isimplemented on a device other than the electric device (e.g. 100A ofFIG. 1) on which the touch test is performed, the diagnosis server 100may receive the data during the touch test, and present indications to auser, for controlling the flow of the touch test. For example, thediagnosis server 100 may receive the electric signal, indicative of atest object's contact with the touchscreen, and indicate whether valuesof properties expressed by the electrical signal are within a predefinedrange. Such properties may include, for example: circumference of thecontact area of the test object with the touchscreen, location of thetest object's contact with the touchscreen, and amplitude of theelectric signal. For example, if a circumference of the contact area ofthe test object with the touchscreen does not meet predefinedconditions, the user may be presented a requirement to use a differenttest object, so as to meet the predefined conditions.

According to other embodiments, the electric device (e.g. element 100 ofFIG. 1) may be configured to emit indications for controlling the flowof the touch test according to properties, such as the aforementionedproperties, whereas the diagnosis server 100 may perform the analysis ofdata, to determine the condition of the touchscreen.

According to other embodiments where the diagnosis server 100 and theelectric device (e.g. element 100 of FIG. 1) are implemented on the samedevice, both the indications for controlling the flow of the touch testand analysis of data are performed on the same device.

According to some embodiments, the diagnosis server 100 may receive datapertaining to an initial group 230 of touchscreens, comprising at leastone touchscreen with at least one imperfection, and at least onetouchscreen without imperfections, and data pertaining to a global group240 of touchscreens, from beyond the initial group of touchscreens.

The diagnosis server 100 may further receive feedback data from anexternal source (e.g.: a user interface and/or a database), tofacilitate differentiation between touchscreens with and withoutimperfections. The feedback data may include, for example, at least oneof: values of parameters pertaining to the audio signal; values ofparameters pertaining to the electric signal; values of parameterspertaining to various sensors associated with the electric device;predetermined ranges of the parameters for determining existence ofimperfections; predetermined ranges of the parameters for determiningexistence of a screen cover; general information regarding specifictouchscreens (e.g.: type of touchscreen, type of electric deviceassociated with the touchscreen); and information regarding thecondition of specific touchscreens (e.g.: existence, of imperfections,type of imperfections and location of imperfections on the touchscreen).

According to some embodiments, the diagnosis server 100 may include afeature extraction module 220, configured to extract features of datafrom at least one of the audio signal and electric signal. The extractedfeatures may include at least part of: value of parameters pertaining toat least one of the audio signal and electric signal (e.g.: duration,frequency, amplitude and the like); statistical information (e.g.:correlation between the signals, correlation between portions of thesignals, cross-correlation between the signals, and the like) andproducts of computational transformations applied to at least one of theaudio signal and electric signal. Examples for such products ofcomputational transformations include: Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)coefficients, Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) coefficients, DiscreteCosine Transform (DCT) coefficients, Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT)coefficients, and Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) and thelike.

According to some embodiments, the diagnosis server 100 may include ananalysis module 210, configured to: analyze the data extracted from thefeature extraction module 220; and determine existence of imperfectionsif the extracted values are within a predetermined range.

According to some embodiments, the analysis module 210 may be configuredto: analyze the data extracted from the feature extraction module 220;determine at least one difference in at least one extracted feature ofat least one of the audio signal, and electric signal between atouchscreen with an imperfection and one without imperfections from aninitial group of touchscreens; and utilize the determined difference toascertain the existence of an imperfection on a touchscreen from beyondthe initial group of touchscreens.

According to some embodiments, the analysis module 210 may beimplemented as a supervised machine-learning (ML) model, configured tobe trained by an initial training set (e.g.: the initial touchscreengroup) and by input from a supervised feedback (e.g. element 250 of FIG.3). After the ML model has been sufficiently trained, the model may beutilized to predict (e.g.: to determine) whether additional datapertaining to a touchscreen from a global group of touchscreens 240(e.g., beyond the initial group of touchscreens) indicates a touchscreenwith or without imperfections. According to some embodiments, themachine-learning (ML) model may be of any type known in the art forsupervised classification, and/or unsupervised clustering of acousticand/or electric signal features, including for example ConvolutionalNeural Networks, Support Vector Machines (SVMs), K-Means clustering, orany other type of supervised or unsupervised ML model known in the art.

According to some embodiments, the analysis module 210 may be configuredto form, and/or receive an initial group of labeled touchscreens,comprising at least one touchscreen that has at least one knownimperfection, and at least one touchscreen without imperfections.According to some embodiments, the labeling of each touchscreen in theinitial group may be received by a user, or via an initial group datamodule (e.g. element 230 of FIG. 3).

According to some embodiments, the analysis module 210 may be configuredto obtain at least one feature from the feature extraction module 220,pertaining to at least one of the acoustic signal and electric signal,and relating to each touchscreen of the initial group of labeledtouchscreens.

According to some embodiments, the analysis module 210 may be configuredto classify each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens toclasses according to the feature obtained from the feature extractionmodule. Each such class may be associated with touchscreens that have ordo not have imperfections. According to some embodiments, each class mayalso be associated with at least one specific parameter relating to theimperfection, including for example a type (e.g.: a fracture, scratch orhole), location (e.g., at the middle or at the circumference of thetouchscreen), and the like.

According to some embodiments, the analysis module 210 may be configuredto receive an additional acoustic signal from an additional unlabeledtouchscreen, and at least one feature extracted from the additionalacoustic signal of the additional unlabeled touchscreen, and associatethe additional touchscreen with a class of touchscreens, to determinewhether the additional touchscreen does or does not have imperfections,and parameters of determined imperfections.

According to some embodiments, the diagnosis server 200 may present thedetermined condition of a specific touchscreen via a conditionindication module 270. The condition indication module may, for example,be configured to present the examined touchscreen's condition on adedicated display, or transmit the result of the analysis performed bythe analysis module 210 to a user, a third party, such as a maintenanceservice provider, an insurer, and the like. The result may betransmitted via a wired or wireless communication.

According to some embodiments, the diagnosis server 200 may beconfigured to store information relating to specific touch tests on atest data storage module 260. The information may, for example serve to:enhance future analysis of touch tests; and record the condition ofspecific, diagnosed touchscreens.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4, which depicts a flow diagram of amethod of implementing a touch test, according to some embodiments. Themethod may include: swiping a test object along at least a portion ofthe touchscreen (s1005); producing, by the touchscreen, an electricsignal indicative of the test object's contact with the touchscreen(s1010); receiving an acoustic signal by an acoustic sensor, during theswipe of the test object along the touchscreen (s1015); analyzing, by aprocessor, at least one of the electric signal and the acoustic signal(s1020); and determining existence of imperfections on the touchscreen'ssurface based on the analysis (s1025).

Reference is now made to FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5B, which jointly comprise aflow diagram, depicting a method of implementing a touch test, accordingto some embodiments.

According to some embodiments, the electric device (e.g.: a smartphoneor a tablet computer, such as electric device 100A of FIG. 1), which isassociated with the examined touchscreen (touchscreen 135A of FIG. 1)may run an application, to support the performance of the touch test, bymonitoring electric and/or acoustic signals pertaining to the touchtest, and prompting a user to act according to the monitored signals andthe different stages of the touch test, as described below.

According to some embodiments, the electric device may be configured toperform at least one prerequisite test (s2005), to ascertain whether thetouch test may be performed on the electric device. The at least oneprerequisite test may include, for example: a self-test of an electricdevice's microphone (e.g. by using audio speakers associated with theelectric device); a test for verifying that no earphones are pluggedinto a socket of the electric device; and a test for verifying that thedevice is not in ‘mute’ mode. According to some embodiments, the touchtest may not be commenced before the prerequisite test has passed(s2010).

According to some embodiments, after the prerequisite test hassuccessfully passed, the electric device may be configured to prompt auser to touch the touchscreen with a test object (s2015). According tosome embodiments, the test object may be the user's fingernail, aconductive object (e.g. a pin) held by the user, or another object thathas sufficient capacitance to be detected by the examined touchscreen.

According to some embodiments, the application may obtain the electricsignal produced by the touchscreen in response to the contact of thetest object with the touchscreen (s2020), and determine whether a screencover is applied to the touchscreen (s2025). If so, the application mayprompt the user to remove the screen cover, and to touch the screenagain with the test object, to verify the screen cover's removal(s2030). If no screen cover is applied to the touchscreen's surface, theapplication running on the electric device may present a pattern on thetouchscreen, and prompt the user to swipe the test object along thepresented pattern (s2035).

According to some embodiments, as the user swipes the test object alongthe touchscreen's surface, the touchscreen continuously produces anelectric signal indicative of the test object's contact with thetouchscreen (S2040). According to some embodiments, the electric signalmay indicate at least part of: the location, the area and theconsistency of the test object's contact with the touchscreen's surface.According to some embodiments the electric device is configured torecord the electric signal in a memory (e.g.: element 120 of FIG. 2).

According to some embodiments, the electric device is configured tocontinuously receive an acoustic signal, produced by the swiping of thetest object along the screen, by an acoustic sensor (S2045). Theacoustic sensor may, for example, be a microphone embedded within theelectric device (e.g.: element 135B of FIG. 1), an external microphone,or a piezoelectric transducer associated with the electric device.According to some embodiments the electric device is configured torecord the acoustic signal in a memory (e.g.: memory 120 of FIG. 2).

According to some embodiments, the circumference of the test object'scontact area may be required to be such that the test object wouldintrude into imperfections such as cracks, scratches, or holes on thetouchscreen's external surface, in a manner that is noticeable and/ormeasurable by electronic sensors embedded within the electric device.For example, a finger may be swiped across a cracked screen withoutsignificantly intruding into the cracks, whereas a fingernail or a pinwould intrude into the cracks in a manner that is identifiable throughanalysis of acoustic and/or electric signals pertaining to the swipingof the pin or fingernail across the screen. According to theseembodiments, the application running on the electric device may beconfigured to continuously perform a circumference test, where thecircumference of the test object's contact area is continuouslymonitored, and compared with a predefined, maximal circumferencethreshold value (s2050).

According to some embodiments, the application may be configured toperform a path test, where the location of the test object iscontinuously monitored, to ensure that the user follows the swipe of thetest object along the presented path (s2055). According to otherembodiments, the touch test may be performed by aggregating individualswipes of the test object, and analyzing at least one of the audiosignal, and electric signal pertaining to each of the individual swipes,without presenting a pattern, and without prompting the user to follow apattern for the test object's location.

According to some embodiments, the application may be configured todetermine whether the circumference test has failed (e.g.: if thecircumference of the test object's contact area with the touchscreen atany moment of the touch test has exceeded the predefined maximalcircumference threshold value), or if the path test has failed (e.g.: ifthe path of the swiped test object does not follow the presentedpattern). According to some embodiments, if one of the path test orcircumference test has failed (s2060), the touch test may be restarted,and the user may be prompted to restart the swipe of the test objectalong the presented pattern.

According to some embodiments, the application may be configured tocontinuously check (s2065) whether the touch test has been completed(e.g.: the test object has been swiped along the entire presentedpattern). If so, then the application may be configured to propagate(s2070) at least one of the acoustic signal and electric signal to adiagnosis server (e.g.: element 200 of FIG. 3).

According to some embodiments, the feature extraction module of thediagnosis server (e.g.: element 220 of FIG. 3) is configured to extractfeatures pertaining to at least one of the audio signal and electricsignal (s2075), as discussed above in relation to FIG. 3.

According to some embodiments, the analysis module of the diagnosisserver (e.g.: element 210 of FIG. 3) is configured to analyze at leastone of the audio signal and electric signal (s2080), and determinewhether the examined touchscreen has at least one imperfection, asdiscussed above in relation to FIG. 3. According to some embodiments,the diagnosis server 200 is further configured to present the result ofthe touch test, and indicate the condition of the touchscreen (s2085),as discussed above in relation to FIG. 3.

While certain features of the invention have been illustrated anddescribed herein, many modifications, substitutions, changes, andequivalents will now occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. It is,therefore, to be understood that the appended claims are intended tocover all such modifications and changes as fall within the true spiritof the invention.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method of detecting imperfections on asurface of a touchscreen of an electrical device, comprising: swiping atest object along at least a portion of the touchscreen; producing, bythe touchscreen, an electric signal indicative of the test object'scontact with the touchscreen; receiving an acoustic signal by anacoustic sensor, during the swipe of the test object along thetouchscreen; analyzing, by a processor, at least one of the electricsignal and received acoustic signal, wherein the analyzing includes:referencing an initial group of labeled touchscreens, comprising atleast one touchscreen with at least one known imperfection, and at leastone touchscreen without imperfections, wherein: at least one feature hasbeen extracted from an electric signal relating to each touchscreen ofthe initial group of labeled touchscreens; each touchscreen of thelabeled group of touchscreens has been classified to classes accordingto said at least one feature; each class is associated with touchscreenshaving or not having imperfections; producing an additional electricsignal, from an additional unlabeled touchscreen; extracting, by aprocessor, the at least one feature from the additional electric signalof the additional unlabeled touchscreen; and associating, by aprocessor, the additional touchscreen with a class of touchscreenshaving or not having imperfections; and determining an existence ofimperfections on the touchscreen's surface based on the analysis.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said analyzing comprises analyzing by theprocessor of the electric signal, indicative of the test object'scontact with the touchscreen, to detect a circumference of the testobject's contact area with the touchscreen.
 3. The method of claim 2,further comprising: defining at least one requirement for thecircumference of the test object's contact area with the touchscreen;and when the requirement is not met, prompting a user to apply changesto the test object to meet the defined requirement.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: presenting a pattern on the touchscreen andprompting a user to swipe a test object along the presented pattern;analyzing, by a processor, the electric signal, indicative of the testobject's contact with the touchscreen; verifying follow of the testobject's swipe along the presented pattern, based on the analysis; andprompting the user to repeat the swipe along at least a portion of thepresented pattern, when the verification has failed.
 5. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: detecting whether a screen cover is appliedto the touchscreen, based on analysis of data received from the acousticsensor; and prompting a user to remove the cover and repeat the swipewhen a screen cover has been detected.
 6. The method of claim 1, whereindetermining the existence of imperfections based on the analysis furthercomprises: extracting, by a processor, values of at least one parameterof the acoustic signal; and determining existence of imperfections whenthe extracted values are within at least one predetermined range.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein analysis of the electric signal furthercomprises: forming the initial group of labeled touchscreens, comprisingat least one touchscreen with at least one known imperfection, and atleast one touchscreen without imperfections; extracting, by a processor,the at least one feature from the electric signal relating to eachtouchscreen of the initial group of labeled touchscreens; andclassifying each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens toclasses according to said at least one feature, wherein each class isassociated with touchscreens having or not having imperfections.
 8. Themethod of claim 1, analysis of the accoustic signal further comprises:forming an initial group of labeled touchscreens, comprising at leastone touchscreen with at least one known imperfection, and at least onetouchscreen without imperfections; extracting, by a processor, at leastone feature from the acoustic signal relating to each touchscreen of theinitial group of labeled touchscreens; classifying each touchscreen ofthe labeled group of touchscreens to classes according to said at leastone feature, wherein each class is associated with touchscreens havingor not having imperfections; receiving an additional acoustic signal,from an additional unlabeled touchscreen; extracting the at least onefeature from the additional acoustic signal of the additional unlabeledtouchscreen; and associating the additional touchscreen with a class oftouchscreens having or not having imperfections.
 9. The method of claim8, wherein the at least one feature includes at least one of:frequencies, amplitudes, Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) coefficients,Discrete Fourier Transform (DPT) coefficients, Discrete Cosine Transform(DCT) coefficients, Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) coefficients, andMel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC).
 10. A system for detectingimperfections on a surface of a touchscreen of an electrical device,comprising: at least one non-transitory memory device, wherein at leastone module of instruction code is stored; at least one processorassociated with the at least one non-transitory memory device, whereinthe at least one processor is configured upon execution of the at leastone module of instruction code to: receive an electric signal producedby the touchscreen, indicative of a test object's contact with thetouchscreen; receive an acoustic signal produced by an acoustic sensor,during a swipe of the test object along the touchscreen; analyze atleast one of the electric signal and acoustic signal, wherein to analyzeincludes to: reference an initial group of labeled touchscreens,comprising at least one touchscreen with at least one knownimperfection, and at least one touchscreen without imperfections,wherein: at least one feature has been extracted from an electric signalrelating to each touchscreen of the initial group of labeledtouchscreens; each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens hasbeen classified to classes according to said at least one feature; eachclass is associated with touchscreens having or not havingimperfections; produce an additional electric signal, from an additionalunlabeled touchscreen; extract, by a processor, the at least one featurefrom the additional electric signal of the additional unlabeledtouchscreen; and associate, by a processor, the additional touchscreenwith a class of touchscreens having or not having imperfections; anddetermine existence of imperfections on the touchscreen's surface basedon the analysis.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein at least oneprocessor is that of a remote server, and wherein the analysis of atleast one of the electric signal and acoustic signal and thedetermination of existence of imperfections is performed by theprocessor of the remote server.
 12. The system of claim 10, wherein theat least one processor is further configured to analyze the electricsignal indicative of the test object's contact with the touchscreen, anddetect a circumference of the test object's contact area with thetouchscreen.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the at least oneprocessor is further configured to receive at least one requirement forthe circumference of the test object's contact area with thetouchscreen; and when the requirement is not met, prompt a user to applychanges to the test object to meet the received at least onerequirement.
 14. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least oneprocessor is further configured to: present a pattern on the touchscreenand prompt a user to swipe a test object along the presented pattern;analyze the electric signal, indicative of the test object's contactwith the touchscreen; verify follow of the test object's swipe along thepresented pattern, based on the analysis; and prompt the user to repeatthe swipe along at least a portion of the presented pattern, when theverification has failed.
 15. The system of claim 10, wherein the atleast one processor is further configured to: detect whether a screencover is applied to the touchscreen, based on analysis of data receivedfrom the acoustic sensor; and prompt the user to remove the cover andrepeat the swipe when a screen cover has been detected.
 16. The systemof claim 10, wherein the at least one processor is configured todetermine the existence of imperfections based on the analysis by:extracting values of at least one parameter of the acoustic signal; anddetermining existence of imperfections when the extracted values arewithin at least one predetermined range.
 17. The system of claim 10,wherein analysis of the electric signal by the at least one processorfurther comprises: forming the initial group of labeled touchscreens,comprising at least one touchscreen with at least one knownimperfection, and at least one touchscreen without imperfections;extracting the at least one feature from the electric signal relating toeach touchscreen of the initial group of labeled touchscreens;classifying each touchscreen of the labeled group of touchscreens toclasses according to said at least one feature, wherein each class isassociated with touchscreens having or not having imperfections.
 18. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein analysis of the acoustic signal by the atleast one processor further comprises: forming an initial group oflabeled touchscreens, comprising at least one touchscreen with at leastone known imperfection, and at least one touchscreen withoutimperfections; extracting at least one feature from the acoustic signalrelating to each touchscreen of the initial group of labeledtouchscreens; classifying each touchscreen of the labeled group oftouchscreens to classes according to said at least one feature, whereineach class is associated with touchscreens having or not havingimperfections; receiving an additional acoustic signal, from anadditional unlabeled touchscreen; extracting the at least one featurefrom the additional acoustic signal of the additional unlabeledtouchscreen; and associating the additional touchscreen with a class oftouchscreens having or not having imperfections.
 19. The system of claim18, wherein the at least one feature includes at least one of:frequencies, amplitudes, Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) coefficients,Discrete Fourier Transform (DPT) coefficients, Discrete Cosine Transform(DCT) coefficients, Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) coefficients, andMel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC).
 20. The system of claim 10,wherein the acoustic sensor is associated with the electric device, andis one of a microphone and a piezoelectric sensor.